The Future Of Chick-Flicks

Irin Carmon looks at success of the awesome Bridesmaids and wonders about the future of the genre:

One of the things that made that movie so funny was that it was the organic effort of comedians -- women who could act but, almost to the one, primarily came from the comedy and improv worlds. That aspect was actually considered a liability for Hollywood execs who thought the lack of a recognizable star -- like Reese, Cameron, or Sarah Jessica -- would hurt the movie, even though plenty of successful "male" comedies like The Hangover and numerous Apatow-produced films starred comedians. Whereas these other, more famous, women are comedic actresses, whose funniness has historically not been allowed to get in the way of their "relatability" or attractiveness. 

We'd love to be proven wrong, though.

Good points, thought I'm not sure that it was the presence of comedians, per se, so much as the presence of people who knew funny getting the room to execute. That said, the greater point of needing a "recognizable star" is taken.

I've been wondering some myself what went into Bridesmaids going gangbusters. Studios like to say that critics have nothing to do with the bottom-line--which I guess explains why they always use quotes from critics to promote their products. (Sometimes they even make them up.) Bridesmaids had considerable critical buzz coming out the gate. I'd be interested in how much that helped.